The Korea Herald

Corpse surfaces during “Avengers” shooting

A dead body floated to the surface of the Han River under Mapo Bridge in Seoul, where the American movie crew was filming a sequel to Hollywood Blockbuster “The Avengers,” police said Sunday. “A security member of the movie crew aboard a boat found the body floating and reported it to the police at around 2:10 p.m.,” said an officer at Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. A police team retrieved the badly decomposed body, which was later identified as a 21-year-old man surnamed Yoon. He was report

March 30, 2014

Corpse surfaces during “Avengers” shooting

‘Avengers’ begins shooting in Seoul

After smashing up South Africa and Italy, the superheroes of Hollywood blockbuster “The Avengers” finally landed here Sunday, causing traffic disruptions on a usually busy Seoul bridge. The shooting for “The Avengers: the Age of Ultron,” a highly-anticipated sequel to the 2012 mega-hit film, began at Mapo Bridge as part of its two-week stint in Korea, blocking all lanes on the bridge for nearly 12 hours from early in the morning. Much of the details are being kept under wraps, including the plot

March 30, 2014

In the fields of UFW’s birth, farm workers see Chavez film

The audience members stepped off buses waving red UFW flags. Some came straight from the fields. Those from Salinas and Madera and farther away had given up a day’s wages to attend.The first feature film about Cesar Chavez had been screened in Los Angeles and at the White House. On Tuesday evening, “Cesar Chavez” played outdoors and in Spanish for the farm workers Chavez represented.“From the beginning, we said we have to go back and give it to the people,” director Diego Luna said. “I’ve been w

March 28, 2014

In the fields of UFW’s birth, farm workers see Chavez film

Box Office

August: Osage County (the U.S.)Opening April 3Drama. Comedy. Directed by John Wells. Violet (Meryl Streep) lives in a rural area outside Pawhuska, Oklahoma, with her husband, Beverly (Sam Shepard), an alcoholic but kindhearted poet. Extremely contentious and bitter, she suffers from oral cancer and struggles with drug addiction. One day, out of the blue, Beverly hires a young Native American woman as a live-in cook and caregiver for Violet, and then disappears from the house. Devastated, Violet

March 28, 2014

'Grandmaster' earns top honor at Asian Film Awards

MACAU (AP) – ``The Grandmaster'' won best picture, best director for Wong Kar Wai and five other honors at the Asian Film Awards. Backstage, Wong and his star, best-actress winner Zhang Ziyi, were all smiles with their awards. But their thoughts were with the family of Ju Kun, a ``Grandmaster'' crew member who was a passenger on Malaysia Airlines Flight 370.Wong said that although he's happy for all the recognition the film's cast and crew have received, he regrets that a member of the team coul

March 28, 2014

‘Fifty Shades,’ ‘Fast,’ ‘Dumber’ teased in Vegas

LAS VEGAS (AP) ― Universal Pictures had a strong start at the box office this year, with “Lone Survivor” grossing more than $124 million and “Ride Along” bringing in nearly $146 million globally. The run could continue for the studio, which previewed its upcoming slate of films on Tuesday at the annual movie theater convention CinemaCon. “A healthy slate is a diverse one,” said Donna Langley, chairman of Universal. “Hits don’t come just in summer and Christmas,” added Nikki Rocco, president of d

March 26, 2014

‘Fifty Shades,’ ‘Fast,’ ‘Dumber’ teased in Vegas

Israeli Miss World’s crusade against sexual assault goes global

NETANYA, Israel (AP) ― When 18-year-old Israeli beauty queen Linor Abargil was crowned Miss World in 1998, the tears streaming down her cheeks appeared to be the overwhelming joy of a young woman fulfilling a childhood dream. Few knew the painful truth behind them ― that just six weeks earlier she had been raped at knifepoint. Unlike most victims of sexual assault, Abargil refused to keep quiet. She pressed charges, spoke out publicly and testified at a trial that sent her attacker to prison for

March 26, 2014

Israeli Miss World’s crusade against sexual assault goes global

'Snowpiercer' claims No. 2 spot at China box office

South Korean sci-fi thriller "Snowpiercer" took second place in the Chinese box office, posting a strong 8.2 billion won (US$7.5 million) in the opening week, the film's distributor said Tuesday.Released last Monday throughout China, the film was ranked No. 2 on the Chinese box office with 8.2 billion won, following 3-D Hollywood action film "Need for Speed," CJ E&M Corp. said, citing a Chinese box-office tracker.It marks the best opening for South Korean films released in China. "Snowpiercer" b

March 25, 2014

Teen sci-fi franchise ‘Divergent’ rakes in $56 million

NEW YORK (AP) ― To go with “Twilight” and “The Hunger Games,” Lionsgate now has a trio of young-adult franchises with the box-office leading “Divergent.” The teen science-fiction thriller starring Shailene Woodley debuted with $56 million over the weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. The opening, while less than some anticipated, launches Lionsgate’s third franchise built on young-adult best-sellers. With an audience 59 percent female and half under the age of 25, “Divergent” lured you

March 24, 2014

Box Office: Han Gong-ju, Stories We Tell, Moster

Han Gong-ju (Korea)Opening April 17Drama. Directed by Lee Su-jin. Han Gong-ju is a 17-year-old girl who starts a new life in a new school, leaving everything behind in her hometown. She makes new friends and begins to sing again, which she gave up after going through a traumatic event in the past. But everything changes when the parents of her old classmates visit Gong-ju out of the blue. The debut feature by director Lee Su-jin won numerous awards from international film festivals, including Ro

March 21, 2014

Box Office: Han Gong-ju, Stories We Tell, Moster

Jake Gyllenhaal doubles down in ‘Enemy’

Movie doubles seem to be multiplying at an alarming rate. At last fall’s Toronto International Film Festival both “Enemy” and “The Double” grappled with what happens when you confront your doppelganger, and the idea appeared again in several films at the Sundance Film Festival.With their enigmatic explorations of identity and persona, these recent films seem to be grappling with the human issues of the online age.“Enemy,” opening in theaters Friday and already available on VOD, also has its own

March 21, 2014

Award-winning film ‘Han Gong-ju’ to hit local theaters

Filmmaker Lee Su-jin’s first feature film “Han Gong-ju” is finally hitting local theaters after scooping up awards at international film festivals, including Rotterdam and Deauville.The film tells the tale of a traumatized teen sexual-assault victim, who is forced to change schools and leaves her family. It had its world premiere at the Marrakech International Film Festival in November, and won the top prize there, given by a Martin Scorsese-headed jury. It also nabbed the Tiger Award, which is

March 19, 2014

Award-winning film ‘Han Gong-ju’ to hit local theaters

‘Avengers’ sequel to film in Seoul

Some scenes from the sequel to Hollywood blockbuster “The Avengers” will be filmed in and around Seoul from March 30-April 9.U.S.-based Marvel Studios signed a memorandum of understanding with the related Korean authorities on Tuesday regarding filming dates and six locations ― five in Seoul and one in its outskirts ― for “The Avengers: Age of Ultron.” The five locations in Seoul are Cheongdam Grand Bridge, a northern road in Digital Media City in Sangam-dong, Gangnam Boulevard, Mapo Grand Bridg

March 18, 2014

Seoul to close some roads for filming 'The Avengers'

The Seoul metropolitan city said Tuesday that it will restrict traffic in roads near the city's landmarks for half a month starting later this month for the filming of the sequel of the 2012 Hollywood blockbuster "The Avengers."Major scenes of the superhero sequel titled "Avengers: Age of Ultron" will be shot in the South Korean capital under a memorandum of understanding signed by the Korean Film Commission and four related government authorities, and the Burbank, Calif.-based Marvel Studios.Un

March 18, 2014

‘12 Years a Slave’ author’s death still a mystery

SARATOGA SPRINGS, New York (AP) ― Historians know where Solomon Northup was born, where he lived and where he worked. They know whom he married and how many children he had. They know he played the fiddle and spent 12 years enslaved in the South before being freed. What historians don’t know about the author of “12 Years a Slave” is when and how he died and where he is buried. It’s a lingering mystery in the final chapter of the life of the 19th-century free-born African-American whose compellin

March 17, 2014

‘Mr. Peabody & Sherman’ leads U.S. box office

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― Street racers couldn’t catch a time-traveling dog and his son at the multiplex last weekend. Though Disney’s “Need for Speed” was expected to take the No. 1 position at the box office, DreamWorks’ “Mr. Peabody & Sherman” took the lead, with the action film in third place. The animated movie, about the adventures of a genius dog and the human son he adopted, earned $21.2 million, according to studio estimates released Sunday. Debuting on March 9 at No. 2, the 3-D kiddie-jaunt f

March 17, 2014

‘Mr. Peabody & Sherman’ leads U.S. box office

Eun-gyo returns as a ‘Monster’

Actress Kim Go-eun made an impressive breakthrough film debut back in 2012, with filmmaker Jung Ji-woo’s critically acclaimed sensual drama “Eungyo (A Muse).” The 22-year-old is best known by the name of her first-ever film character, Eungyo, a lively teenager who becomes the object of desire for a renowned elderly poet. Many expected her to continue her professional career after finishing “Eungyo” ― which received much attention for its subject matter and sexually explicit scenes ― and nabbing

March 16, 2014

Box Office

Stories We Tell (Canada)Opened March 14Documentary. Directed by Sarah PolleyCanadian filmmaker Sarah Polley discovered in 2007, at age 28, that her father was not her biological father and that she was the result of an extramarital affair. Her personal documentary “Stories We Tell” follows her shocking discovery and family secrets, consisting of interviews with her siblings from her mother’s two marriages, as well as Michael Polley, the man who raised her, and her biological father Harry Gulkin.

March 14, 2014

Clooney and company go corny with ‘Monuments Men’

“The Monuments Men” is the “Last Vegas” of World War II movies. A roughly true, fictionally embellished account of the efforts of American arts scholars ― drafted into the Army ― to preserve the artistic patrimony of Europe from the scourge of combat and theft by the Germans, it is a cute but clunky ensemble piece that director George Clooney rarely bestows with the gravitas and jauntiness this material demanded.They changed the names ― well, of almost everyone ― from the historic “Monuments Men

March 14, 2014

Clooney and company go corny with ‘Monuments Men’

With help from thousands, ‘Veronica Mars’ reborn

NEW YORK (AP) ― Rob Thomas knew he might make movie history by using Kickstarter to crowd-fund his “Veronica Mars” film. But he wasn’t prepared for the posters. Of all the prizes offered to donors of “Veronica Mars” ― everything from a digital copy of the script for $10 to a walk-on cameo for $10,000 ― the most taxing was autographing the cast-signed posters promised to more than 5,000 backers. It took several hand-cramping days and constant shuttling of boxes from one signee to the next. “We’ve

March 13, 2014

With help from thousands, ‘Veronica Mars’ reborn